A Fight in One's Mind
by Theodosius
Summary: An alternative take on Mass Effect 3's ending inspired by the Indoctrination Theory.
1. Chapter 1

Darkness. Complete and utter darkness. Was that how death felt like? Seeing the last moments of your friends' fate, the result of your sacrifice? If that were so, it wasn't so bad. At least you get to know what happens next. But now it's just darkness. How long will this go on?

_Gasp_. Shepard's eyes suddenly opened again and the extreme necessity for air made him vehemently start breathing. His surroundings were not bright, and yet after seeing so much darkness, he still felt the need to squint for a while. He felt completely numb and he could also feel the taste of blood on his lips. The incessant buzzing in his ears that he could feel a while ago began to slowly die out. Now he could clearly hear the sounds of battle, the distinguishable noise of a Reaper firing its beam. He still felt a massive headache, but it took him some time to realize that maybe he is not dead, after all.

Slowly, he began to lift his head so that he could see exactly where he was. His armor was significantly damaged and his helmet had fallen off and it stood beside him, completely broken. The bright light of the beam he thought he had used to travel to the Citadel was in visual range again, not too far away from him, and made him squint once more. Only now could he hear the sounds that it emitted. Still going through the shock, he found it difficult to move as it caused him a lot of pain, but the vanguard adapted quickly.

Shepard was definitely still on Earth again. But if the Reapers were still here, then what had he just experienced? He could clearly recall that he had destroyed them all, seeing through the lies of the Catalyst who tried to sway him towards the opportunity to merge with them or control them. It must have been a dream. He looked at all the dead bodies beside him that had been ripped apart by Harbinger's beam. Then it dawned on him: Liara and Garrus. What had become of them? They hadn't made it to the beam because they weren't on the Citadel, but now he began to question whether he had. They couldn't be dead, they just couldn't, they had to be alive, and they had to be here somewhere!

He struggled to get back on his feet, but not long after he had that thought, he stood above the many bodies and began to frantically search for anyone alive. If he had survived, there was a chance for the others to be still alive, as well.

Not long after he started doing so he nearly fell back down once he heard his name being called by the voice of a Reaper behind him. He had heard that voice before, and he had no doubts that it was Harbinger as he turned around and faced him. He was absolutely massive in person, as big as the beam itself, and Shepard could immediately feel his head starting to throb again and he could swear he could also hear some kind of ominous whispers around him.

"Impressive, Shepard. But what you'll never comprehend is that it's all in vain, no matter how hard you try", Harbinger spoke, "With you or without you, we'll succeed. A pity that you brought everyone here only to make their deaths quicker and easier."

"And you…", Shepard began to respond as he coughed from the pain, "…will never understand that no matter what our odds are, we'll continue to fight. We'll never surrender. We won't be your thralls."

"Your words are once again empty as they always have been. You don't speak for the entire galaxy, only for yourself. You've never even realized that the thralls you've encountered is evidence enough that you are incorrect.", Harbinger replied, "The cycle will continue, and a lone human is not going to stop us. You've been a hinderance to our plan long enough. Goodbye, Shepard."

That was it. The real death was just around the corner and Shepard was all alone. He turned around to run, but he tripped over a body and fell down. He could already see the red light on the floor being emitted by Harbinger, and the beam would inevitably follow. He thought about everything he cared for in one quick second, what he had achieved and what he had failed, almost coming to terms with his death, until he heard a laser being fired, not the one that the Reapers used, and an explosion behind him.

Turning around, he saw that Harbinger's attack had been interrupted by a couple of Turian fighters that had descended down to Earth. They had hit him right in the center, it seemed, which Harbinger didn't seem to expect. It wasn't long before he once again opened his firing laser and Shepard knew that it was his cue to run; the Turians had bought him so time, yes, but Harbinger was adamant on finishing Shepard off and largely ignored them while they continued to fire on him.

Shepard had only enough strength to hide behind a big pile of concrete rubble and then had to stop to take a breath. He was bleeding badly, but he inwardly thanked the Turian fighters for keeping Harbinger occupied. That's when he heard that somebody was trying to contact the team that had been sent to the beam via a comlink that belonged to one of the dead soldiers close by. It took all of Shepard's remaining strength to pick it up as he hissed in pain as he did so.

"Is anyone there? Anyone? Please respond! Over!", Shepard could hear Major Coats' frantic voice on the radio.

"This is Commander Shepard!", he replied as he heard an explosion nearby; probably one of the Turian fighters had been shot down already.

"Commander? You're alive?", Major Coats ejaculated.

"Yes, and there could be more survivors out here! Send somebody over to help!", Shepard desperately pleaded as he started to move further away from Harbinger towards another suitable cover position.

"We can't risk anything with Harbinger there! I gave the retreat order!", Major Coats ruefully retorted. Shepard was about to reply when he heard Anderson's voice on the same radio channel, "Shepard! Is that really you? Hang tight! We're coming for you!"

"Anderson?", Shepard said, but the radio seemed to have been suddenly jammed. Harbinger was closing in.

Just as he had realized that, the unmistakable noise of a Reaper firing its beam echoed around the graveyard around him. The pillar of debris he was using for his hiding place began to collapse and Shepard was on the move again. Adrenaline, and most importantly, hope, kept him alive, but his eyes never stopped searching for any survivors around, particularly Liara and Garrus, who were with him when he was hit by Harbinger's beam and blacked out. He couldn't see them anywhere, though.

As he looked behind him to see where Harbinger was, though, Shepard tripped over and hit his head on the road, feeling the immense pain take over him, and seeing Harbinger move in for the kill… And complete darkness again, like the one he had before. Was he going to dream again? Or was he dead for good this time?


	2. Chapter 2

It was the same feeling that had brought Shepard to unconsciousness that woke him up: A great deal of pain. His return to reality was much more violent and sudden this time around as he immediately noticed that he was being tended to by a nurse with medi-gel. He was on the inside of a rapidly moving Mako, lying in a bed, strapped to it, actually, and was surrounded by Alliance soldiers.

"Commander! Easy, now!", the nurse cried out in surprise, turning every soldier's attention to Shepard, "How are you feeling?"

"Been… better. What's going on? What happened?", Shepard barely managed to ask as he didn't even have the strength to pinch himself to make sure this was not a dream again.

"Admiral Anderson will brief you once we reach the bunker", the nurse replied, "But for now I want you to relax. You've lost a lot of blood."

"What about… Liara and Garrus? Are they all right?", Shepard continued with his questions, hearing the nurse but not really listening to her, "What happened to Harbinger?"

"Easy, I said!", the nurse scolded the Commander, "The Admiral will explain everything once we get there!"

"Why... don't you tell me yourself? I just want to know what's going on!", Shepard replied, annoyed, not budging at all.

"You were saved by the geth, Commander", one of the soldiers finally spoke up, "Several fighters sacrificed themselves to distract Harbinger long enough to evacuate you. While he was disoriented, one of our cruisers managed to get a lock on his position and launched an orbital bombardment. That softened Harbinger up enough to make him retreat to the Citadel."

"With that in mind, the Reapers have become more disorganized", continued another one of the soldiers on the Mako, "But there's word from Eden Prime that reinforcements are on their way. We need to get the Crucible operational as fast as possible."

"Did you find any other survivors?", Shepard asked with anxiety.

"We don't know. Several squads were sent to your position after Harbinger was out of the way", replied the soldier, "But proper radio communication has not been our ally today."

Shepard had a hard time trying to piece everything together. He was still in shock from what he'd seen during his dream. Destroying all synthetic life to defeat the Reapers had never been his plan, but after hearing what the Catalyst had to say, he had even managed to accept death and make his peace with it. Now that he was still definitely alive, and the war still going on, Shepard had to do his best to hurt the Reapers where it hurts. First, though, he had to make sure that his whole team is intact and standing beside him…

The battle could clearly be heard outside, though it wasn't as active as it had been before the run to the beam: the two sides were at a stalemate and were mostly trying to regroup. The Mako began to slow down a bit, and as the nurse gave Shepard a nod and unstrapped him, he struggled to get back on his feet. At least the bleeding had been mollified after he had received a fair amount of medi-gel to boost him up. The soldiers walked out the Mako first, and Shepard soon followed. They had stopped at the building where he had talked with his squadmates before the attack, the last real chance he had to savour his friendship with them. There were countless of soldiers being treated by doctors in a hectic fashion. The Turians and Krogan were helping each other recover whatever equipment was left, and there was a group that mourned the dead. The heavy toll of the war was now felt like it never had before as people were trying to call their friends and loved ones, wanting to know whether they were all right, and sometimes bursting into tears when they eventually hear the ugly truth. Shepard took a moment to remember Mordin and Thane's sacrifices and Ashley's death on Virmire. What he feared the most right now was not the Reapers or even Earth's fate; he feared that within minutes he could possibly hear names of more who hadn't made it. Names of those who were close to him.

Limping towards the command center, Shepard went through the door, looking at the countless soldiers that had piled up to take a breath until the next attack. The night was still as eerie as it had been during Shepard's descent to Earth, which already felt like weeks ago. He was spared the trouble of looking for anyone from his squad when he could make out Anderson's voice calling his name in relief. He was walking alongside Major Coats, who had apparently informed him of what had happened, to Shepard.

"Shepard! Are you all right? We thought you had died!", Anderson nearly yelled, already helping Shepard up the stairs to the command center where the Admiral had briefed him before; the same thing he was about to do now.

"Anderson!", Shepard coughed from the pain, "You didn't make it to the beam by any chance?"

"What? Me? The beam?", Anderson replied, completely taken aback, "No, I was here, coordinating the attack. Nobody made it to the beam. Nobody could even after the geth attacked Harbinger. The Reapers have apparently deployed a mass effect field preventing anyone from accessing the beam."

"Are you sure?", Shepard asked indignantly.

"Yes. Heavy weapons don't seem to be working. As far as we could understand from its design, the beam now only keeps the Citadel docked above Earth", Anderson began explaining as he sat behind the desk filled with tactical computers and Shepard sat on the opposite side, "Even if you had made it to the beam, you would have been pushed back. Quite frankly, I don't know why Harbinger came there in the first place."

"Did you find anybody else alive?", Shepard asked, tired of asking the question, but desperate to know the answer.

"Ah…", Anderson said, seemingly uncomfortable with answering the question, purposefully avoiding Shepard's gaze, "We did, Shepard. We found a couple of soldiers, along with Liara and Garrus. They have a pulse, but…"

"But?"

"But there's something wrong with them. They're unconscious, and nothing seems to wake them up", Anderson sighed.

"What? Where are they?", Shepard asked, standing up from the bench in bewilderment, ready to go to wherever they were being kept.

"We've set up a med bay in the building across. Last I heard, that's where they were sent", Anderson replied, and as soon as Shepard started limping towards the door, he yelled, "Shepard! Wait a second, there's nothing you can do to help them, I need you here!"

"I can't just leave them there! I have to see them!", Shepard fought back.

"I know it's hard, but I really need your help, Shepard. We need to figure out our next move. The war is far from over, and I have questions of my own", the Admiral pleaded in earnest, already up on his feet.

Just the mere thought of Liara and Garrus not making it through was much more painful than any of Shepard's countless wounds that he had been enduring since he woke up as not even the medi-gel was enough to completely heal them. He couldn't imagine life without Liara, the woman he loved and the one he'd decided to spent the rest of his life with, or Garrus, his best friend that has always been there for him, a friend who'd always follow him to hell and back. The thought that they could be no longer alive because he screwed up was maddening, but he couldn't turn down Anderson's need for help, especially at a time like this.

"What do you need me to do?", Shepard reluctantly gave in.

"Things have been strangely quiet after your assault on the beam. Almost too quiet", Anderson explained as he showed a graphic illustration of the beam's tactical location on the holographic map of the computer in front of his desk, "I think we've caught the Reapers at a disadvantage, at last. I can't believe I'm saying this, but we owe the geth a great deal; Harbinger retreating was a crucial blow to the Reapers. We have to capitalize on the situation."

"As far as I know, we don't have much time. Reinforcements are coming from Eden Prime", Shepard informed.

"Yes, I know. That's why we have to use the opportunity to fire up the Crucible and see what it does. We're taking the battle back to space", Anderson replied, changing the holographic image with a layout of the Reaper fleet above, "Most of the Reapers are positioned around the Citadel, and even though they're disorganized, attacking them head on will result in a lot of casualties."

"No, that's too risky", Shepard said, "There has to be a better way. We should use the Normandy. We can have it distract them."

"That's dangerous, as well, Shepard", Anderson warned, "The Normandy's stealth drive will only work for a short period of time. The Reapers will surely return fire as soon as they're attacked."

"One way or another, we have to retake control of the Citadel", Shepard persevered with his tactical advice, "And we can't do it conventionally, we both know that. We could launch a squadron of fighters to accompany the Normandy, confusing the Reapers and making them easy prey for the battleships and the Destiny Ascension."

"You know that there's a great risk of friendly fire", Anderson replied, "But it might be the only chance we've got. The geth fleet has mostly been destroyed, but their sacrifice was not in vain. There's several quarian life ships that are helping out with repairs. But with the Turian fleet combined with ours, as well as the Destiny Ascension, we might just be able to succeed."

"Anderson, what about Cerberus? The Illusive Man? Have you encountered them?", Shepard asked, recalling the dream sequence that he had seen not long before.

"No, you know more on this matter than I do", Anderson shrugged, "I have no idea what the Illusive Man is planning and quite frankly, I don't care what his schemes are. Our goal is the Reapers."

"He was very passionate about controlling them", Shepard stated, remembering what he had seen while unconscious.

"You and I both know that there's only one way we stop the Reapers once and for all: destroying them. The Crucible was built from cycle to cycle for a reason; it's the key to our success. We can't back out now", Anderson confidently replied, visibly fed up with being outsmarted by the Reapers time after time again.

"And that's what we're going to do, Anderson", Shepard assured, "And I think this plan is all we've got. And I want to be on board the Normandy when we attack. I've come this way and I want to see it through, and I won't let a lone wound stop me."

"I know you wouldn't have it any other way", Anderson chuckled. His radio suddenly chimed, and he answered, "Yes? What? Are you certain?", Anderson said as he looked worriedly at Shepard, almost remorseful, "That bad? Quarantined?"

"Is this about Liara and Garrus?", Shepard asked timidly, and seeing Anderson's blank stare in return, he knew it was true. Not looking back, he immediately stood up and started going down the stairs as fast as he could.

"Shepard!", Anderson called, making the Commander look back to the Admiral for a second, "I'm… I'm sorry."

Shepard continued striding through the stairs. He was in pain, but he didn't care. He saw the stares he got from the soldiers around him, as well as the civillians that had come to see them, but he tried to remain oblivious. Nobody was stopping him from going to the med bay this time.


	3. Chapter 3

Soon after Shepard found himself entering the hospital, which was crowded with soldiers being treated for their injuries, and he looked for any sign of his squadmates. He stumbled upon a nurse holding a datapad. She looked worried when she saw him.

"Do you know where Liara is? And Garrus?", Shepard asked in despair, taking a deep breath after almost running to the med bay.

"Commander… They're here, but… I'm sorry, I'd advise you to stay away; they're under quarantine", the nurse replied ruefully.

"What? Why? What's wrong with them?"

"We assume… we assume that they're indoctrinated", the nurse sighed, obviously feeling sorry for Shepard, having a hard time finding the right words.

"Indoctrinated? No… Oh, God…", Shepard said in disbelief.

"I'm so sorry, Commander", the nurse said in an attempt to comfort Shepard.

"I have to see them!", Shepard pleaded, "Indoctrination is not contagious, there's no reason for them to be quarantined!"

"That's what we thought until we found out that in their case, it's… different. Our first clue was that people felt strange in the same room with them", the nurse replied, "They exhibited signs of indoctrination themselves when they were close by. Since contact with the Reapers is obviously gone at the moment, they shouldn't be in the state they're in now. Otherwise they would have been turned into husks."

"That's not possible…", Shepard refused to believe, "I understand the risks, doctor, but I have to see them. Please."

The nurse sighed, "I see there's no dissuading you, Commander. You can find them through that corridor on your left, the first door to your right. But be careful. Don't take too long."

Shepard followed the given instructions, trying to ignore the images of pain and suffering all around him. Going through the ominous dark and empty corridor ahead, he found the door to the room he had been directed to and opened it. The first thing that Shepard saw was Liara's inert body on one of the hospital beds inside. Her armor had been significantly damaged, and she was lying on her back, her eyes wide open and locked on the ceiling. Shepard immediately ran to her side, and was horrified to see that her eyes were not blue as they always have been, but were replaced with glowing orbs, much like the Illusive Man's eyes. She was completely unaware of his presence. Shepard couldn't help but break down. He couldn't bear the sight of Liara lying helplessly like this and started to cry.

"Liara… Oh, no…", Shepard cried, "Can you hear me? Please!"

Deep inside, Shepard knew that Liara wouldn't hear him, but he had to try. He grabbed her hand and stroked it, remembering the night they had before launching the attack on Cronos Station.

"Don't give up, Liara… You can fight this", Shepard sniffed, "Fight for us, and for our little blue children…"

Then Shepard also noticed the body on the hospital bed beside Liara. It was Garrus, who also looked the same way, staring at the wall with eyes replaced with orbs, his visor gone and his armor also broken.

"There's no Shepard without Vakarian, Garrus… Don't you dare give in…", Shepard pleaded, looking at his friend through tears.

He knew that there was nothing he could do, and he also knew that being there would only cause him more pain, but he couldn't bring himself to leave, either. He knelt down next to Liara, secretly hoping that his presence would help in some way. After a while, Shepard heard footsteps approaching, and was surprised to see Wrex at the door almost out of breath.

"Shepard! Damn, you're alive!", Wrex yelled, "I came as soon as I heard. What happened?"

"It's good to see you in one piece, Wrex", Shepard said, "But I can't say the same for them…"

"What's happened to them?", Wrex asked, visibly upset upon seeing Liara and Garrus the way they were.

"They've been indoctrinated... When we were running to the beam… I think", Shepard explained, "I'm starting to believe that that was Harbinger's true intention."

"But they're nowhere near the Reapers now, are they?", Wrex inquired.

"No, they aren't… I don't know exactly how it happened…", Shepard said in confusion, "I think I was indoctrinated for a while, as well… I'm still not sure about anything. Everything's such a mess, Wrex."

"You've been back from the dead twice now, Shepard", Wrex said, "If that doesn't send a clear message to the Reapers, I don't know what the hell will."

"If I was more careful… If I had foreseen this… It was my failure, and they're the ones that have to pay for it", Shepard said with regret, feeling his voice tremble nervously.

"Hey, Shepard, don't you dare think like that. All Krogan are finally free of the genophage and united thanks to you", Wrex comforted Shepard as he lay his hand on the Commander's shoulder, "And if somebody had told me that the geth and the Quarians would be fighting side by side, I'd have said that they have the mental capacity of a varren. But you did those things, Shepard."

"You owe that to Legion and Mordin", Shepard replied.

"Look, now, I'm willing to bet that once we kick the Reapers' synthetic asses back to oblivion, the indoctrination will stop working", Wrex assured, "And everyone under its influence will be brought back, including Liara and Garrus."

"I just… I just hope it's not too late", Shepard sighed.

"Come on, Shepard, you being here won't do anyone any good", Wrex urged the Commander, "We've got a galaxy to save."

As soon as Wrex had said that, Shepard could swear that he heard voices in the back of his head. He looked back. Somebody had just witnessed their exchange. He got up, went out to the corridor to investigate, but to no avail as there was nobody there.

"What's going on, Shepard?", Wrex asked, following him out.

"Nothing", Shepard replied, trying to ignore that his head started throbbing, "We should go… The Reapers' influence is still present throughout the compound."

"That wound gonna be a problem?", Wrex inquired as he nodded towards Shepard's once bleeding abdomen.

"Just a scratch", Shepard downplayed.

"Now that's more like it", Wrex chuckled, "What's the plan?"

"We're taking the battle to the skies", Shepard explained, "And the Normandy's going to deliver the killing blow."

"I like the sound of that! Reminds me of old times", Wrex commented.

Leaving Liara and Garrus the way they were was painful, but Shepard knew that he had a duty to fulfill, and if the Reapers emerged victorious, it wouldn't matter either way. Besides, what Wrex had said did make sense, and it was the only way that Shepard could help them. Wrex accompanied the Commander to the command center. A briefing had already started. Admiral Hackett's hologram stood in the centre of the room, surrounded by the rest. Shepard was glad to see that Kaidan and Tali were among them and didn't looked harmed. They nodded his way when they saw him enter, visibly relieved at the sight of him.

"Ah, Commander, just in time. You had us worried here for a minute. Glad to see you alive", Hackett said, "We're launching our final offensive against the Reapers, and as far as I understood from Admiral Anderson, the Normandy's going to be at the helm of the fleet."

"That's the plan", Shepard replied.

"Good. We discovered the source of the interference that prevented ships from descending down on Earth before. It was apparently a device similar to Object Rho", Hackett explained, "EDI discovered it while scanning one of the Sovereign-class Reapers. We took it out at the first opportunity we got, allowing the Turians and the geth to help our ground assault and eventually rescue you."

"They've been of tremendous help here in London", Anderson continued, "The Reaper onslaught is at a halt. The beam is still the wild card, though."

"We don't want to risk bombarding the beam from orbit, Admiral, because it might result in the Citadel's collapse on Earth", Hackett said, "We don't know for certain whether that's the only support it has. We're not taking any unnecessary risks here."

"How are we supposed to get the Citadel's arms open, then?", Kaidan inquired.

"A small fighter squadron would be able to infiltrate the Citadel through the gap in the Presidium ring", Hackett answered, clicking on a console at his end, which triggered another hologram beside him visually depicting the intended tactic as he went along, "The mass effect field around the beam is bound to make the narrow gap even tighter, but it's our only hope of getting to the Citadel's control console."

"And the fleet of Reapers guarding it? They sure won't make it easy on us", Wrex joined in.

"The Normandy's going to lead another fighter squadron that would distract the Reapers long enough to enable us to move in with our fleets", Hackett elaborated, "They'll think that that'll be the trap, but once we attack, the Normandy will lead the next squadron into the Citadel under the radar."

"Harbinger is bound to take notice of that, Admiral", Shepard warned, "We have to be quick to get inside."

"Once you're in, Shepard, the Reapers will not be able to follow you anymore", Anderson replied, "They're too large to move through the Presidium ring. They'll be forced to open the Citadel arms otherwise."

"Any idea as to what the Crucible will do once it's attached, Admiral?", Kaidan asked.

"None. But several galactic cycles were convinced this was the key to stopping the Reapers", Anderson answered, "It's our only hope."

"That's correct", Hackett continued, "But we have to make haste. Once the Reaper reinforcements arrive, the odds will no longer be in our favour. Hackett out."

As Hackett's hologram vanished, there was a small moment of silence in the room.

"All right! Everybody knows what they're supposed to do. This is the final push!", Anderson spoke up, "The galaxy's fate lies on our shoulders! Make me proud today as you always have!"

"We won't fail you, Admiral!", Shepard saluted his superior. The rest followed his example.

"This is not about failing me, Shepard", Anderson replied, "This is about not failing mankind."

Once the meeting was adjourned, everyone started heading off in different directions, trying to help out in any way for the final strike against the Reapers. Kaidan and Tali rushed to Shepard's side immediately after they were allowed to.

"Commander, thank goodness you're alive!", Kaidan said in relief, "When I heard what happened, I feared the worst. Are you certain you're all right?"

"Don't worry, Kaidan, I am…", Shepard assured the Major, "I've never felt more determined to stop the Reapers."

"We heard about Liara and Garrus… Will they make it?", Tali asked, her voice trembling with worry.

"I don't know...", Shepard answered, sighing in despair, looking down on his feet, "They have to. They just have to."

"Keelah! I'm so worried about them… I can only imagine what you must be feeling, Shepard", Tali replied, so upset that not even the suit could hide it any longer, "But you can't dwell on that. Not now. I know it's going to be difficult, but we have to take the fight to the Reapers, for their sake. We're right behind you, Shepard, every step along the way!"

"Thanks, Tali", Shepard said, a little more hopeful than before, even though he could never really stop thinking about the squadmates he's lost in this war and especially the ones that could very well follow.

"Yeah, yeah, enough talk already", Wrex interrupted, "I'd much rather chat about our victory over a bottle of ryncol after we've dealt with Harbinger and his lot."

"Wrex, you coming with us?", Kaidan inquired.

"Damn straight I am. I want to have one hell of a story to tell to my son Mordin once I get back to Tuchanka", Wrex proudly answered, "I've put Grunt in charge of the Krogan for now. Hope he doesn't do anything stupid."

"This way to the Normandy", Kaidan said as he started to lead the rest of the crew to the ship that was hopefully going to help win the war with the Reapers once and for all. Shepard might not have Liara and Garrus by his side, but right now, he was sincerely thankful that he had this wonderful crew here for the final battle. Were things to go as planned, Shepard had them to thank for everything.


	4. Chapter 4

Shepard and his team were on board an Alliance shuttle that was going towards the Normandy. Anderson had once again remained on Earth, organizing the forces that were left to fight the remaining Reaper forces and drive them off London. Shepard, on the other hand, among a lot of other things on his head, was still contemplating the dream he had and tried to think of its significance. Was it a warning? Was it a trick? Nothing was really clear. To top it all off, the Reapers have now apparently upgraded their indoctrination technique, as evident in Liara and Garrus.

The silence on the shuttle was deafening. The war had already left its scars on everyone, with the battle on Earth being its culmination, and Shepard got the worst of it, both physically and mentally. He knew it was high time he put all that aside in the coming battle. He had already done so once on Akuze, and if he hadn't, he could have died along with the rest of his team. And right now, at the war to end all wars, Shepard knew he had to concentrate on the task at hand.

"Are you sure you're well enough to fight, Commander?", Kaidan asked, standing next to Shepard, his hand firmly gripping the railings of the shuttle above.

"Yeah. The medi-gel must have finally kicked in. I'm fine", Shepard assured.

"Approaching the Normandy, Commander. ETA two minutes", the shuttle pilot announced.

Shepard looked outside the shuttle window. The battle had come to a standoff. There were a few vessels that were separated from the main groups from each side that were still fighting at one another, but the fleets were mostly regrouping and either expecting reinforcements, in the Reapers' case, or were waiting to spring a trap. The Citadel stood firmly closed, the beam from Earth clearly seen, while the Crucible was still guarded by Hackett's fleet on the other side. Debris was literally everywhere. It was as if an asteroid field had formed around Earth. The initial battle had been merciless.

Soon after Shepard found himself back on the Normandy, along with Kaidan, Tali and Wrex. Joker was glad to see them all in one piece as they went through the airlock. The marines working on the Normandy's numerous consoles saluted the Commander as he led the way towards the War Room. Their smiles and signs of relief was just what Shepard needed to see right now. He couldn't bear the feeling of despair and helplessness anymore, and he wouldn't let it consume him.

"Reporting for duty, Commander!", Traynor happily saluted Shepard as he walked past her.

"At ease, Specialist! This is the final stretch!", Shepard replied, proceeding towards the War Room followed by the rest of the crew.

As soon as they entered the War Room, Shepard could see that the whole team was invigorated by seeing him alive and well. The feeling was definitely mutual; hope was far from lost, and victory against the Reapers never felt as possible as it did now.

"Orders, Commander?", Joker asked over the Normandy's communication system while the crew assembled around the holographic projector in the War Room.

"Get me Hackett on the line, Joker. Let's do this", Shepard replied. Soon after connection with the Admiral was established.

"Commander. Is your crew ready for the final assault?", Hackett asked through the comm.

"As ready as they'll ever be", the Commander replied, looking proudly at his eager team. Several shouts of approval were sent his way.

"Good. We shouldn't keep Harbinger waiting", Hackett said, "You'll be joined by a STG Task Force squad, as well as a team from the Turian Blackwatch. They'll help you infiltrate the Citadel from the inside once we draw the Reapers' attention."

"Sounds reasonable enough", Shepard approved.

"You'll only get one shot at this, Commander. Make it count", Hackett continued, "The Reapers are bound to overwhelm our fleet if their reinforcements arrive. You have to find the quickest way to open the Citadel's arms so that we could get the Crucible in place and activate it."

"Where would be the best place to land?", Shepard asked.

"There's a platform installed at the top of the Citadel Tower", Hackett explained as a hologram showed up showing the docking platform, "It's the fastest way to the control console you used during the Battle of the Citadel three years ago. It should be big enough for a few fighters to land on."

"I understand", Shepard replied.

"Good. We begin in five minutes", Hackett announced, "Hackett out."

"All right, people!", Shepard exclaimed as he spoke over the ship's intercom and faced the crew around him, no longer feeling any physical wounds and having sealed away any thoughts of those whose lives hang in the balance, "This is it. Let's show the Reapers that they can and will be defeated. Let's show them that through unity, faith and will, we are the ones that should be feared, not the other way around. Maybe we don't truly comprehend their motives for performing genocide every fifty thousand years. Maybe they have a reason. But what is certain is that they would never understand our motives for survival. Let's show them that we won't stand by and let them take away or hope or ruin our future! Every cycle that's been defeated stands by us at this very moment! Tonight won't be a victory for the humans, the Turians, the Salarians, or the Asari. This will be a victory for every single living being in the galaxy!"

The Normandy's crew was so invigorated that it couldn't be described with words. There wasn't a face among the crowd that wasn't determined to stop the Reapers once and for all. There wasn't a soul in the entire fleet that didn't have their reasons for wanting to defeat the oppressors. The galaxy was united under a single glorious purpose like it never had before, and no amount of casualties was going to stop anyone.

Shepard, along with Kaidan, Wrex and Tali went back to the bridge just in time to see Joker fly the Normandy towards the Reaper forces surrounding the Citadel. The stealth drive was online but the Reapers could still be able to make the ship out as soon as it entered visual range.

"Don't worry, Commander, I know what I'm doing", Joker said after seeing the nervous look on Shepard's face, "Let's just hope that the Turians and Salarians do their part of the job."

"It'll be one hell of a short flight if they don't", Wrex commented behind him.

"Kirrahe knows what he's doing", Kaidan assured, "He'll keep the rest in line."

Shepard could make out Harbinger among the Reapers around the Citadel. He was definitely the biggest of them all, though it was evident that he had endured a heavy beating. Joker had cautiously put the Normandy in position behind the Reaper forces, facing the fleet in the distance. There was still some fighting going on in the farthest reaches of space around, particularly near the Moon, but most of the ships were waiting somebody to finally strike. It was palpable that the Reapers weren't as confident or aggressive as they had been before.

Soon after, a few groups of Salarian fighters intercepted the Reapers, along with Turian reinforcements. The Reapers already began to fire their red beams and made contact with a few of the fighters, but most of them were a bit too fast and managed to dodge enemy fire. Several Oculi were dispatched to deal with the threat, but their speed couldn't match that of the Salarian and Turian fighters.

"If you're able to assist us, Admiral, now would be a good time", Kirrahe's voice could be heard over the intercom, "Harbinger's approaching our position."

Just as he said that, several Alliance and Quarian frigates led by the Destiny Ascension started firing from a distance at Harbinger's group. Unleashing his multiple beams, he quickly disposed of a ship or two, but everything was going to plan: the Reapers' attention was now focused on the fleet. The Geth were also sending thousands of zettabytes of garbage data to the Reapers. Despite the fact that they couldn't be infected with a virus like the Geth, the Reapers would undoubtedly have a hard time dealing with so many threats at once. Harbinger and the Destiny Ascension were heading the two respective fleets, the latter succeeding in withstanding the Reaper beams.

"Commander, now's the time!", Kirrahe exclaimed over the intercom, "I'll leave a few of my men to deal with the remaining Oculi."

"All right", Joker replied, and after seeing the Commander's nod of approval said, "Follow our lead. We'll pay the Citadel a visit."

"Jeff, we've been detected", EDI warned, who was sitting in the co-pilot's seat, "I advise haste, they're trying to shut us down."

"Well, you were designed for cyber warfare, weren't you?", Joker answered, "Do your thing."

Pulling off a few swift manoeuvres, Joker flew right past one of the Reapers, who had definitely spotted them, and broke right through a squadron of Oculi around the beam. The Salarian and Turian fighters were right on their tail, though a couple of them were hit by enemy fire and exploded.

The Normandy nearly made contact with a piece of debris by the Presidium ring, but eventually made it through. The view of the Citadel arms closed in around them was magnificent, yet ominous. The Citadel was no longer the only safe haven in the galaxy, but rather the most dangerous and enigmatic site.

"Uh… Commander, trouble ahead", Joker said. Captivated by the view, Shepard hadn't even noticed the fact that there was a Sovereign-class Reaper right in the centre of the Citadel.

"Now it gets fun", Wrex commented. Shepard thought that sometimes Krogan had a strange view of fun.

The Normandy immediately went for the Citadel Tower along with the rest of the fighters. Just like Hackett had said, there was a platform next to the top of the tower, but was infested with Reaper forces. Joker fired the Normandy's guns at them, completely decimating them, and proceeded to land.

"You go on ahead, Commander, we'll keep that Reaper occupied", Kirrahe said over the intercom with determination.

"Don't get yourself killed, all right?", Shepard replied, who couldn't bear the loss of any more of his allies.

"Don't worry, we'll hold the line", Kirrahe assured, "Just like we did on Virmire and on Sur'Kesh."

"You know it's different this time… but good luck", Shepard answered.

"Come on, Commander, I won't be able to stay on this platform for long!", Joker warned, "The Normandy would be a sitting duck here."

"We'll keep contact over the radio", Shepard said as he geared up, nodded at his squad to follow him to the cargo bay, "And keep the ship in one piece. We'll need a ride back home."

"Thank you for your concern, but I will. Go kick their asses!", Joker replied.

The sounds of battle could already be heard in the distance as soon as Shepard, Kaidan, Wrex and Tali stepped out of the Normandy among the corpses of the indoctrinated forces. The Citadel Console was close by as they were closing in on the Council Chambers from the eastern entrance. So far, no Reaper forces were in sight.

"Be on your guard, everybody", Shepard instructed, his assault rifle firmly in his grip, expecting the unexpected.

"Right behind you, Shepard", Tali assured as they closed in the newly installed airlock leading to the Citadel Council Chambers.

No resistance so far. Shepard didn't like not knowing where his enemy was. The deafening silence kept everyone on edge, not knowing whether they were walking into a trap… But it was too late to back down now.


	5. Chapter 5

The door to the Citadel Council opened automatically as soon as Shepard approached it. The chamber was exactly as it had been before and there were no signs of damage. It was completely empty, almost as if the war had never happened. Shepard tentatively approached the stairs leading up to where the Council meetings took place and ordered the rest of his squad to investigate the area for suspicious activity. Apart from the Reaper that could clearly be seen outside, still trying to deal with the fighters around it, and the enclosed city blotting out the stars, there was virtually nothing inside the Citadel Tower. Still, Shepard had enough experience with this kind of situations to know that nothing was ever easy, as he had learned that the hard way on Thessia.

Upon approaching the ramp where he had stood so many times before during his Spectre initiation and fight with Saren, the computer console he had used to open the arms before appeared before him. Looking around, he saw Kaidan scout every corner of the area, and he was sure that Wrex and Tali did the same at the lower level of the Council Chambers. Nothing was unfamiliar as it was during his dream involving the shifting and changing Citadel corridors which slightly resembled the Shadow Broker Ship and the Collector Base.

Shepard began working on the console in order to unlock the arms. It was nearly complete before the projected keyboard disappeared and a screeching noise similar to the one he had heard during his mission involving Project Overlord startled him. That made all members of his crew rush to his position.

"Shepard! What happened?", Tali asked worriedly as she looked around to see any signs of movement.

"I don't…", Shepard began to reply when suddenly a hologram appeared where Saren had been projected during Shepard's first try to revoke his Spectre status. It was a hologram of the Illusive Man.

"Shepard", he said, taking a drag of the cigarette in his hand, "You certainly took your time getting here."

"What have you done?", Shepard replied desperately, "Why do you always have to stand in our way when we're so close to victory?"

"We are. Victory is closer than you'd ever care to imagine, Shepard, but I've given up trying to make you understand", the Illusive Man said, a vicious smirk on his face.

"What the hell is going on?", Wrex asked angrily, pointing his shotgun at the Illusive Man's hologram.

"Now I see that I was never wrong about you, Shepard. You did just fulfill your purpose", the Illusive Man continued, completely ignoring the Commander's other squad members.

"And what exactly did I fulfill?", Shepard inquired, full of rage over the fact that the Illusive Man would always show up when defeating the Reapers was just within his grasp.

"You were right about one thing. Controlling a Reaper is a lot different than controlling husks", the Illusive Man answered, "What you've helped me do just now is obtain control of both."

"And how did I do that?", Shepard asked.

"He's delusional, Shepard, don't listen to him!", Kaidan warned as he intervened.

"Did you really think I'd just let you board my station and sit on my chair, Shepard? Did you think that was the end of Cerberus?", the Illusive Man said, letting out a cackle, "You never did realize that I had a chip planted on you, Shepard, when you assaulted my base?"

"What are you talking about?", Shepard inquired incredulously.

"We discovered that the ultrasonic waves the Reapers emit when they indoctrinate their slaves are also what helps them operate for such long periods of time, Shepard", the Illusive Man began explaining, "It's the essence of their existence. That's how they communicate between one another and harvest their energy. And that power never ends because it's emitted everywhere across the galaxy. It's ingenious. But not invincible."

"Get to the point", Shepard interrupted.

"The very same energy can be used, if reversed, to indoctrinate the Reapers themselves. And I found a way to that", the Illusive Man continued, "There are Reaper devices similar to that of Object Rho, which you no doubt remember, hidden around the galaxy that emit that energy. We suspect that they were made from the creators of the Reapers so very long ago. Who they were and why they created them is of no concern at the moment. The important thing is that I know how to use this weakness to my advantage."

"Do you really think that the Reapers will let you do that?", Shepard asked, letting a small derisive chuckle.

"It certainly hasn't been done before. But they just did", the Illusive Man replied, "We discovered one such object near Anadius' sun. I had it covertly transported to the Citadel as soon as we did, which no doubt gained the Reapers' attention. They soon arrived in the Serpent Nebula, but by then it was too late. We had already reversed the signal. The Reapers around the Citadel were subjugated."

"I don't believe you", Shepard said.

"We knew that the Reapers had incredible power, but we never suspected that they could move the Citadel; the gateway to their realm of space", the Illusive Man continued as if he hadn't heard Shepard at all, "Three years ago Sovereign couldn't do that because he was just one Reaper. The ultrasonic waves of a whole fleet of Reapers was enough to make contact with the ones emitted by the Citadel, which is a Reaper control object itself, probably the biggest in existence. It also powers the Mass Relay network, as I'm sure you already know, but the Mass Relays don't seem to be Reaper control devices as the Citadel is. I believe that one of the reasons the Reapers visit our galaxy every fifty thousand years is to harness that energy otherwise they'd completely shut down."

"If you really did control the Reapers, you'd order them to stand down now", Shepard interrupted, looking through the Council Chamber window, seeing the Reaper still fight with the rest of the fighter squadron.

"I eventually will. My goal has always been to uplift humanity", the Illusive Man replied, "And, as you can see, they've already left Earth alone, but the alien fleet does still pose a threat. You really did unite the galaxy, Shepard. Impressive. But that only makes destroying their forces easier now that they're in one place."

"You've gone too far. You're not fighting for uplifting humanity anymore. You want to impose human dominance over the galaxy instead. You're nothing but a mere tyrant!", Shepard accused.

"You may not agree with my ideals, Shepard, but you did just help me accomplish them", the Illusive Man retorted, taking one more drag of his cigarette, "The object we retrieved from Anadius did grant me control of the Reapers in the vicinity, but not in the whole galaxy. There was one more ingredient I needed to achieve that. The Prothean Cipher."

"The Cipher? What has that got to do with anything?", Shepard inquired.

"The Protheans never intended this, but their Cipher, their way of thinking and sharing data across the galaxy via the Beacons they constructed, is largely similar to the Reapers' way of communicating and indoctrinating", the Illusive Man elaborated, "It was a necessary risk to integrate the Cipher's use in the formula we developed to reverse the emissions of all Reaper control objects across the galaxy, just like the Cipher helped the Protheans do that fifty thousand years ago. That's why we developed a chip to extract the Cipher from your consciousness and distribute it, which, when in close proximity to the Reaper control device and combined with the ultrasonic waves it emits, would reach the other Reaper control devices. And it just worked."

"That's… that's impossible", Shepard said.

"He's trying to get in your head, Shepard", Kaidan added, but he was visibly worried.

"Whether you believe it or not is of no concern, Shepard. Of course, there's always a side effect to this kind of… manipulation", the Illusive Man continued, "By interfacing with the ultrasonic waves, the subject becomes prone to Reaper indoctrination. But your willpower is unusually strong, Shepard, and I was right in my assessment that you would resist and find your way here. I know you, Shepard, and I know you're always willing to do the impossible to stop the Reapers. That's why I didn't want to change anything when Project Lazarus brought you back to life. Another gamble, as I was sure you were going to betray me, but it paid off in the end."

"Are you saying that you planned this from the very start?", Shepard asked.

"Not everything was initially planned, Shepard, as we still didn't understand the concept of indoctrination at the time. Otherwise I would have had that chip planted into you while you were being rebuilt, and I wouldn't have had my console rigged to insert it through your hands when you sat on my chair", the Illusive Man answered, visibly pleased with Shepard's expression of shock and awe. He continued, "The only problem I had was Harbinger. For some reason he wasn't affected by the signal as the other Reapers were. At least, not initially."

"That doesn't make sense", Tali commented.

"He's the most advanced Reaper in the fleet. Probably the first one created. His programming had a lot more firewalls that couldn't be penetrated easily", the Illusive Man explained, "And he already knew what I was planning on doing, but he couldn't face the Reaper fleet around the Citadel on his own, so he immediately went to the beam on Earth to stop you from going through. The Reapers' ultrasonic waves were counteracted in his presence, along with the Destroyer that you had defeated. That's why that mass effect field was put up to prevent you from reaching the Citadel."

"So killing me was actually going to help the Reapers oppose your attempts at control?", Shepard asked in disbelief.

"I presume he would have rather had you indoctrinated, Shepard", the Illusive Man answered, "You're a natural leader. Having you on the Reapers' side would have helped them immeasurably, just like Saren helped them all those years ago. Most likely he would have had you order the fleet to destroy the Citadel, taking out the Reapers' gateway to dark space in the process, but also destroying the biggest potentially reversed Reaper control device that I'm using now. Either way, they wouldn't have been able to continue the cycle any longer, because I prevented them from doing so. Regardless of how Harbinger thought he could save the Reapers, the Geth fleet weakened his firewalls by attacking him and sending him garbage data and he was immediately taken control of just like the rest of the Reapers."

"This is insane! I refuse to believe any of this!", Shepard intervened.

"Do you really think that this Reaper would have let you land on the Citadel Tower?", the Illusive Man laughed, "Perhaps a warning shot might be the proof you need."

As the Illusive Man said that, the Reaper enclosed in the Citadel arms fired its beam directly at the Citadel Tower, destroying the docking platform in the process. The fighters that tried to stop him were gone already, and the Reaper was now dangerously close to Shepard and his team.

"Look at the power I have over them, Shepard!", the Illusive Man exclaimed.

"Why keep me alive then?", Shepard asked.

"I need you to order the fleet to cease fire, if they want to be spared their inevitable doom", the Illusive Man answered.

"As if you won't destroy them anyway!", Shepard refused, "You already said that the fleet posed a threat to you. I don't care if it's you we're fighting or the Reapers, we can and we will win this war!"

"Perhaps you'd like to rethink that, Shepard", the Illusive Man replied, "Are you sure you want to be remembered as the one who couldn't negotiate peace in the galaxy by agreeing to my terms, but would rather have everyone in the fleet die because you well know they're fighting a losing battle?"

"If I agree to your terms, there won't be anyone left to remember me!", Shepard yelled furiously, "You'd rather have everyone indoctrinated because you believe that's evolution's intended course!"

"So you'd risk the life of your comrades on that assumption?", the Illusive Man asked, "I have no interest in genocide, Shepard."

"Have you considered that indoctrination works both ways?", Shepard retorted, "You're also under control. Your mind is no longer your own. You never know whether the Reapers want you to believe that you're controlling them."

"I've grown tired of having this conversation so many times, Shepard", the Illusive Man interrupted him with a wave of his hand, "I have no wish to talk about this any longer. It's apparent that you'll risk everyone dying just because you always have that incessant urge to keep fighting. How do you think you'll live with yourself, knowing that your unwillingness to cooperate with me has resulted in the deaths of your beloved Asari and Turian friend?"

"What are you talking about?", Shepard inquired, suddenly feeling afraid.

"I guess I did forget to mention that you were not the only one with a chip implanted", the Illusive Man smirked, "Our experiments on Sanctuary revealed how we might control the Reaper indoctrination process. The chips I had implanted on your friends drain the ultrasonic waves the Reapers emit, multiply them and then distribute them. A few minutes of Reaper contact was all that was necessary to begin their indoctrination. Luckily, they remained long enough in close proximity to the Destroyer and Harbinger on Earth to succumb to my control. Sadly, they lack your willpower to resist, Shepard."

"Bastard!", Wrex yelled, "Pray you don't cross the Krogan because I'll order them to rip your head off in the most painful way possible!"

"I doubt the Krogan have the necessary intelligence to find me", the Illusive Man retorted, quickly turning his attention back to the Commander, "But even with our differences, Shepard, I've always had the utmost respect for you. I'm granting you this choice. The consequences of that choice are on your conscience."

With that, the Illusive Man's hologram disappeared. The Reaper outside was still metres away from the Citadel Tower window, gazing at Shepard and his terrified crew behind him. The control console reappeared, and so did the uplink to the Normandy and the fleet. Shepard looked at his comrades and his friends. None of them really knew what to say, what to believe, and what to do.


	6. Chapter 6

Even after a whole minute had passed, Shepard didn't know what to say or do, and neither did any of his crew. All he could do is stare at the Reaper in front of him, still refusing to believe that any of this was actually happening. It's not as if something had actually changed: the Reapers were still the enemy to beat, regardless of whether they were controlled by the Illusive Man or not, but Shepard knew that he was lying to himself in thinking that. It was not the same. There was something about the Illusive Man behind all of this that was strangely ominous and disturbing, and the fact that the lives of billions were hanging in the balance because of this "choice" Shepard was given did not help in the least.

"Shepard…", Kaidan tried to say, struggling to find the words, "Do you believe him?"

"I didn't. Now? I'm not so sure", Shepard replied, sighing, staring at the console, dumbstruck.

"Don't tell me you're actually considering his offer", Wrex growled, though from the sound of his voice and his nervousness it was obvious that he was in doubt, as well, which was rare sight, "I mean, he couldn't possibly have done what he has. It's probably only this Reaper that he's taken control of."

"No. I know him well enough to know that he's not bluffing", Shepard replied, shifting his gaze from the console at the Reaper again, "I didn't think for a second that he'd succeed, but he's done it."

"So now what?", Tali inquired, just as shocked as the rest of them.

"I don't think this is something that needs to be discussed, Shepard", Kaidan intervened, walking to the side of the Commander, "The Illusive Man is trying to trick us into siding with him. Controlling the Reapers and dominating the galaxy has always been his intention. Do you think we'll be better off if we surrender?"

"No", Shepard simply said, though the one thing that kept him from opening the Citadel arms was Liara's fate; only after he had heard the Illusive Man say that she and Garrus were under his control did he begin to truly doubt his decision. His love for Liara was the most powerful feeling he had ever experienced in his life, and he would do anything to have a chance of a future with her. Despite knowing that it would be the wrong decision, a part of him was urging him to agree to the Illusive Man's terms for Liara's sake. But even deeper he knew that it was selfish of him to want that at the expense of the galaxy's freedom.

"You don't know what might happen, Shepard", Tali said as she put a hand on his back, breaking his train of thought and making him look at her, and continued as if she had read his mind, "Have faith in her. She'd want you to do this."

"Yeah… I know, Tali. I just…", Shepard began to reply, but he had nothing to say that wasn't already clear. He took one last sigh, feeling wrong for being put in this position, and then pressed the button on the Citadel control console saying, "Prepare yourselves for the worst."

The enclosed space around the Citadel arms was slowly opening up. Everybody kept their guns pointed at the Reaper outside, which was still showing no activity whatsoever, and Shepard immediately contacted the Normandy on the comlink.

"Joker! The arms are opening, come and get us!", Shepard yelled, eyes on the Reaper.

"Watch yourself, Commander, I warned the Fifth Fleet about that Reaper, so you better find some cover now!", Joker replied anxiously, and only then did Shepard notice just how close the Alliance ships were already.

"Everyone down the stairs now!", Shepard bellowed, already seeing the red light of the Reaper's beam starting to reveal itself.

Shepard followed Tali, Wrex and Kaidan down the stairs to the lower level of the Council Chambers just in time to evade the red laser, which made contact with the ceiling, and it wasn't long before everything started shaking and slowly crumbling down.

"Shepard!", Wrex yelled, his eyes stuck on the falling ceiling.

"To the platform!", Shepard shouted back, waving his team towards the rear entrance.

"But it got blown up!", Wrex shrieked incredulously.

"Just get your ass over here!", Shepard yelled, already at the door which was thankfully still working, only to stumble upon the broken ramp they had used to enter the chamber.

The immediate change in gravity was evident, as Shepard suddenly couldn't feel his own weight. He had already planned this outcome and, remembering the walk on the Citadel during his attempt to stop Saren all those years ago, he urged his crew to follow him down towards the Presidium, walking along the length of the Citadel tower. Their helmets kept them from suffocating.

"This is crazy, even by my standards!", Wrex roared, barely inaudible as the Reaper beam continued to tear the top of the Citadel Tower apart.

They soon got used to the weightlessness, but they couldn't exactly run as fast as they would have liked. Shepard glanced to his side to see the Citadel arms nearly completely opened, but several Alliance cruisers were already opening fire on the Reaper. The Normandy was still nowhere to be seen.

"Where the hell is that son of a pyjak?", Wrex yelled, firing his shotgun at the Reaper while walking backwards.

"What the hell are you doing?", Kaidan asked, looking back towards his Krogan squadmate.

"I'm making sure this Reaper feels the wrath of all Krogan for what they tried to do on Tuchanka!", Wrex shouted back.

"You're not helping, Wrex! You're just drawing attention to us!", Shepard yelled, running back up to Wrex, allowing Tali to take the lead, and putting his shotgun down.

"I needed to do something really crazy, Shepard, I thought I was losing my touch!", Wrex shrugged.

Now after the Citadel arms had opened completely, the Reaper was being torn apart by Alliance and Turian frigates. It didn't stand a chance, but the pieces flying off its hull started to dangerously drift towards Shepard's crew when the Normandy finally intercepted them, flying downward alongside the Citadel Tower and opening its airlock.

"Everyone, jump!", Shepard commanded, and only after Tali, Kaidan and Wrex had made the leap to the Normandy did he follow. He only managed to catch a glimpse of a Reaper claw nearing the Normandy, but as soon as the airlock door closed, Joker immediately stepped on it and evaded the debris.

Running as fast as he could to the cockpit, Shepard pulled off his helmet and soon found himself looking at Earth through the Normandy's windows alongside Joker.

"What the hell took you so long?", Joker asked while trying to avoid a bunch of Oculi on his tail. Wrex, Tali and Kaidan soon joined the pilot, assessing the situation.

"We need to contact Hackett. Get him on the line now!", Shepard demanded.

"Yeah, right away, Commander, it's not like I've got a dozen of fighters on my back that, by the way, I was fighting with the whole time you were slacking off on the Citadel!", Joker ejaculated, but obliged as he spared a second to establish a communications channel to Fifth Fleet.

"Shepard, you made it", Hackett's voice was heard over the intercom, "We're now attaching the Crucible to the Citadel."

"Admiral, we've got a problem", Shepard replied, "The Illusive Man has managed to take control of the Reapers. They're coming our way as we speak!"

"What?", Hackett asked in disbelief, "We know that there are Reapers approaching. We lost contact with a patrol we established near the Charon Relay."

"There's a device somewhere on the Citadel that transmits ultrasonic waves that lets the Illusive Man command the Reapers. EDI, can you find it?", Shepard asked Joker's co-pilot.

"Scanning…", EDI obliged while Joker was still putting the Normandy through her paces in an effort to dodge the Reaper fighters, "Found it. It's on the Presidium. There's a single signature emitting this specific frequency. It's near the Conduit."

"We can't risk firing at the Presidium. We need to make sure that the Crucible docks as it should", Hackett's voice could be heard over the intercom.

"Shepard, leave it be", Wrex suddenly joined in, "The Reapers are bound to be weaker under his control. He can't possibly know what he's doing."

"Good idea, Wrex", Shepard agreed, watching as a squadron of Geth fighters sent viruses to the Oculi chasing the Normandy, shutting them down, and allowing Joker to finally take a breath.

"Yeah, the Illusive Man might actually be helping us", Kaidan said, and after Shepard looked at him questioningly, the Major added, "Unknowingly, of course."

The Normandy turned around, having successfully evaded the Oculi, and Shepard's crew got to have a good look at the massive Crucible approaching the Citadel. The Reapers had been pushed back significantly, now finding themselves regrouping at the outer edge of Earth, having lost control of the Citadel. It was definitely a surprising sight. The Reapers were being defeated conventionally, still without the help of the Crucible. The crew were silent for a while.

"You really did it, Shepard", Wrex suddenly stated, "Just look at that. You united the galaxy, and the Reapers are getting their asses kicked bad. I didn't believe it could be done. Ever. Not until you helped my people on Tuchanka. Then I reminded myself that you're still around", he continued as he gave his Commander and friend a pat on the back, "Then I thought to myself, what the hell am I thinking? Shepard's here. He'll get it done. And you just did."

"It's not over yet, Wrex", Shepard said, still unsure about what's going to happen and whether he had made the right choices, but he would be lying to himself if he said that his friend's support didn't help immeasurably.

"It might not be", Tali joined in, "But you did the impossible, Shepard. You did everything right. Now it's up to the Crucible to finish the job. You did your part."

"Yeah", Kaidan also said, "I can't believe I ever doubted you. This time, I knew better, and I knew you wouldn't accept the Illusive Man's offer."

"The Commander knows better than to trust that traitorous Cerberus bastard", Joker added.

"He's still out there, as are the Reapers", Shepard reminded, but added, "But thank you. Everyone. It helps."

The Crucible began to dispose of its protective barrier, revealing a much smaller device hidden beneath, just about the scale of the Citadel's Presidium ring. There was no resistance whatsoever in the vicinity. There was a beep in the Normandy's computer system, prompting Joker to scrunch his eyebrows together in confusion until he saw what it was.

"Shepard, Anderson's on the line, he's apparently been trying to contact the Normandy for some time", Joker announced.

"Shepard! Finally, this blasted radio kept dying on us! What's happening?", Anderson asked over the intercom, his voice nervous.

"We're driving the Reapers off and the Crucible is docking as we speak", Shepard informed the Admiral, giving him the short version of the story.

"In that case, get back here ASAP!", Anderson commanded, visibly anxious about something.

"What's going on?", Shepard inquired.

"Something's happened in that medical bay we had set up. I think you better come down here", Anderson replied, "Last I heard you were on the Citadel, so if you're on the Normandy already, Hackett will be able to take care of things up there."

"Joker, lock in on his signal and take us there! Now!", Shepard commanded without hesitation.

"Aye, aye, Commander!", Joker obliged immediately.

Shepard knew the reason Anderson had called him – if it involved a problem in the medical bay of the forward base, it would have had something to do with Liara and Garrus. He only had a moment of relief after he boarded the Normandy and now his heart rate was once again off the charts. He couldn't bear the thought of everything else falling into place at the expense of the lives he cared about the most, despite the fact that it was his decision. All those thoughts about the two of them that he had put at the back of his mind now came rushing back to him with twice the intensity. Shepard was consumed by panic; the one thing that kept him going was now in danger. He hated the fact that he was forcing his crew to leave the battle, but hearing what they had to say, he knew that he couldn't do much else out there anymore. The galaxy needed him and he obliged, the races of the universe needed him and he was there for them, but now was the time to heed the call of his love and his best friend.


	7. Chapter 7

There was nothing anybody from Shepard's crew could do while on their way to the forward command center but hope. Hope that there'll be a way out of the mess. Since the Normandy didn't have a safe place to land anywhere close to Anderson's location, Shepard and his team used the shuttle instead.

It wasn't long before the shuttle doors opened after it had landed and Shepard and his crew were running towards Admiral Anderson and the few soldiers around him, who were staying bunkered down next to a gate towards the forward command center, their guns ready, pointing at every possible entrance and exit. The building was looking even worse than before, with a lot of concrete rubble lying around. It was clear that something bad was going on inside.

"Anderson! What's going on?", Shepard asked the question he had been dying to know the answer to since he heard about the problem in the medical bay.

"The Reapers are gone, Shepard. Not just here, but everywhere on Earth", Anderson replied, almost out of breath, but then added as he took a deep sigh, "But something happened in the medical bay. My men say that the doctors turned on them, apparently indoctrinated, and they've overrun the command center."

"How could they have been indoctrinated?", Shepard protested, "We learned that Liara and Garrus had a chip installed in them by the Illusive Man, but I thought they were quarantined!"

"I don't know, Shepard. It was very sudden. Too fast to say what exacty happened", Anderson answered as he ran the back of his hand along his forehead in frustration.

"So what's the plan?", Wrex inquired, reloading his shotgun.

"We don't know what they're after, but we have to retake the command center", Anderson explained, "There are far too many ways that they could leave the building undetected. We have to cover them all and we're way too few."

"Can't you send in reinforcements?", Tali suggested.

"Most of the soldiers that survived were picked up by freighters to help defend the Crucible", Anderson elaborated, "It will take too long to wait for more people to get here. We have to split up; at least one person per entrance. Everyone must make their way to the central computer room where we had our briefing. They could be tampering with the equipment there."

"Understood", said one of the soldiers beside Anderson.

"I'm taking this one", Shepard nodded towards the door they were all standing next to.

"Are you sure you'll be able to handle it?", Anderson asked, gesturing towards Shepard's wound.

"I'm fine", Shepard downplayed, eager to finish the conversation as fast as possible. Every minute passed was precious and it could mean all the difference.

"Good luck", Anderson managed to say before Shepard was already through the door. The Commander looked behind him to see all of his crew share the sentiment. What could he have done without them?

The Reapers and the Illusive Man were on the verge of defeat. Everyone could see that, and in one last daring attempt by the Systems Alliance and every other race behind them, using the Crucible ought to be the final blow necessary to save the galaxy. But that thought left Shepard's mind as quickly as it had gone through it. The real battle for the Commander lied ahead. He knew this was the Illusive Man's last hope to somehow sabotage the Alliance's plan by using the ones closest to Shepard in a way to break him. There was absolutely no room for error.

Shepard went quietly through the lifeless dark corridors of the building. He had his flashlight on as the lights had gone out for one reason or another. The night never seemed to end, and it looked as if it was at its darkest right at this very moment. Shepard was genuinely afraid. Not for his own life, not because he couldn't see a thing in the narrow hallways, but for what he might discover deep inside. There were things even the galaxy's brightest hero couldn't bear.

His feet got tangled together as Shepard tripped over what he could determine was a body. He immediately illuminated it to see a dead Alliance soldier with his armor ripped apart mercilessly. He could feel the stench of death as he continued onwards. The ever-present disquieting silence didn't help, either. Trying to be as discreet as possible, Shepard turned off his comlink so that his location wouldn't be given away. That's when he heard a deafening scream right next to him, and with no time to react, he was already pushed on the floor by somebody.

Since his assault rifle had been knocked out of his hand, as well as the flashlight that came along with it, Shepard couldn't determine who the attacker was, but rather charged up a Shockwave that tossed the assailant helplessly towards the wall, who made contact with the hard concrete, and collapsed on the floor. That gave Shepard time to grab his rifle as he proceeded to direct the flashlight to the person who had attacked him to reveal the corpse of a woman; one of the nurses that had helped in the infirmary before; the one who had directed him to Liara and Garrus. The wall had hit her right at the back of her head, and a smear of blood followed the point of impact to where her body was lying. Her eyes had been replaced with the glowing orbs that the Illusive Man had. There was no doubt that she had been indoctrinated.

Shepard had to press on regardless of who he encountered. He had to stop the madness that was going within. The thought that the indoctrination originated from Liara and Garrus was too painful to endure. Even though he was still discreet, Shepard quickened, trying to make sense of the maze of hallways he was going through. None of it looked familiar to him until he noticed the door leading to the medical bay. If there were any answers to be found, they had to be there.

Now as he was closer to the cental computer room, he could hear sounds of firing guns in the distance. He was nearing somebody else who had come through a different entrance. Still, the rooms were as dark as they were in the beginning, and Shepard exercised caution. He found a few more bodies of soldiers who had apparently tried to stop the indoctrinated forces until he found the opened door to the quarantined infirmary where he had last seen Liara and Garrus in a state of coma. He went inside, as gingerly as possible, and scanned the room with the crosshair of his rifle. There was nobody there now. Taking one step to ensure that there was nothing of interest, he was suddenly thrown to the wall with great force, his assault rifle slipping through his hands, the flashlight breaking, and his body smashing itself on the wall violently.

Shepard hissed from the twinge, as hitting the wall revived the pain from the wound he had endured before, and he could barely open his eyes to see who had caught him off-guard this time. He never even noticed that he had also been hit by a Biotic Stasis. Even with the darkness all around him, he could make out the silhouette of his attacker. What really gave away her identity, however, were the eyes; eyes so distinct that not even the glowing orbs could completely hide away.

The shock of seeing none other than Liara standing opposite him was overwhelming. She looked as if she was in Stasis herself; her mouth slightly open in surprise, her right hand aloft, supposedly ready to attack once again, her blue eyes locked on Shepard, lifeless because of the visible indoctrination, and yet not completely dead, either. Millions of thoughts passed through Shepard's mind, who still couldn't believe what he was seeing. Even the Stasis he was put in didn't stop the insurmountable amount of feelings boiling up inside of him because of the sight of the one he loved in such a condition.

Then it hit him. Liara wasn't doing anything. She was standing completely still, as immobile as he was, looking at him with a look he couldn't quite comprehend. She had been his driving force, she had been his reason for living, his reason for doing what he could to stop the Reapers, and she was standing right beside him now in the darkness. But she wasn't attacking him despite the obvious indoctrination she had undergone. Shepard struggled to say something, the Stasis still too strong for him to move a muscle. It took him a great deal of effort to finally utter something.

"Liara!", he managed to whisper, gulping, trying to make himself audible, "Liara! It's me!"

Upon saying her name, Shepard could notice that Liara trembled ever so slightly. She could definitely hear him, but she remained still as she had before.

"Liara… You can… You can do this!", Shepard said, every word requiring a great deal of effort on his part, "You're stronger than them! Fight them! I know… I know you can do this!"

Somehow he knew he was getting through to her. Without uttering any more words, he knew that she could still hear them in his mind. Shepard found the necessary strength in the bond between them; a bond that transcended any kind of mental and physical barriers. He couldn't remember blinking once as he looked directly in Liara's eyes, seeing through her, the conflict inside her; trying to help her in any way he could.

"I believe in you, Liara", Shepard uttered, "I always have."

Liara's silhouette suddenly started glowing in blue, her hand violently shaking, urging her to use her Biotics against Shepard, and yet, she had the strength to hold it back. She had closed her eyes, gasping at the pressure she had to be feeling, and tried to resist in any way she could. Before Shepard could say anything more, she had fired her power directly underneath her feet, tossing her body upwards. She hit the ceiling and collapsed on the floor.

Shepard could feel his heart rate threatening his very existence as he struggled to fight through the increasingly weakening Stasis. It only took him a few seconds to start limping towards Liara in a dire attempt to touch her, make sure she was alive, and hold her for eternity and never let go. Every step he took felt like an hour to him until he could finally collapse on his knees next to Liara's body. He immediately checked for pulse, releasing the breath he had been holding ever since Liara had been hit in relief when he could feel her breathing. She was alive.

Finding the strength return in him, Shepard managed to lift Liara, leaving her to rest on his chest, and embraced her, his hands intertwining with hers. There were no signs that she was physically hurt from the impact, and her breathing was steady.

"I'm so proud of you, Liara… I love you so much… So much", Shepard whispered, a couple of tears escaping as he caressed her hands, the world around him now gone; there was only her. The Illusive Man was wrong. Shepard wasn't the only one with such kind of willpower to overcome indoctrination. Liara had it, too, and both of them owed it to one another. Together they defeated Saren. Together they stopped the Shadow Broker. And together they'll defeat the Reapers. Shepard couldn't help but smile when he looked at Liara as she inhaled and exhaled peacefully. It felt like years since he held her like this.

There were sounds of battle in the distance, but Shepard couldn't leave Liara. He never would again, especially when she needed him most. Just like he had faith in her that she'd fight indoctrination, he had faith in his friends that they'd succeed in their mission. Liara remained in Shepard's embrace until he finally felt her gasp as she started to move about in bewilderment, but he held on to her tightly.

"Sh… It's okay, Liara. I'm here", Shepard whispered.

"Shepard!", Liara whispered back, "I can't believe… I'm so sorry!"

"You've got nothing to be sorry about, Liara. You did it. You broke free", Shepard assured her.

"You were dead! The Reapers… They had won…", Liara went on, but was interrupted as Shepard pressed his finger to her lips.

"Don't worry, Liara, it was a dream. The Illusive Man was trying to indoctrinate you", Shepard explained, turning her around so that he could face her and see her bright blue eyes through the darkness again, "But you didn't give in. You resisted."

"Goddess… Shepard…", Liara whimpered as she started crying against his chest, "You're alive…"

"I'm very much alive", Shepard smiled as he caressed her back, "And so are you. We made it."

"But… at what cost? I know I did… I did something…", Liara sniffed, "If I was indoctrinated, then… Did I kill all those people?"

"You didn't kill anyone, Liara. That was not you, and you know it", Shepard continued to comfort the Asari he was holding in his arms. Seeing her still trembling from the thoughts that she could be having, he lifted her head with his hand on her chin and said, "Look at me, Liara. You didn't do anything wrong, I swear to you. You did everything right. I love you."

"I love you, too", Liara whispered, a small smile on her lips. Shepard leaned in as they shared a tender kiss, giving strength to one another, hands still intertwined. Neither of them did any effort to stop the tears. They shared a few moments just for themselves, in each other's embrace, never letting their lips part ways. After they finally broke the kiss, they remained silent for a while until Liara asked, "What's happened, Shepard? The Reapers…"

"I don't know. The Crucible was docking when we left for Earth", Shepard explained, only now reminded of the war that was still going on, "But we are winning, Liara, that I can say for certain. I believe we can do it. We have the Reapers and the Illusive Man at a disadvantage."

"I hope so, Shepard", Liara retorted, stroking her lover's cheek, "I want the galaxy to have a future. I want us to have a future. Us and our child."

"Our child?", Shepard asked tentatively, watching the biggest smile form on Liara's lips, her eyes twinkling.

"I'm pregnant, Shepard", she whispered, looking at him earnestly.

"Pregnant?", Shepard repeated, speechless for a while, until he looked at her and asked, "Are you sure?"

"I've never been more sure about anything in my entire life", Liara smiled as she chuckled, "Well, except for the moment I knew I had fallen in love with you."

"This is…", Shepard struggled to find the words so he embraced Liara instead, the never-ending tears falling again, "Liara… I've… I've never felt happier than I am now."

Shepard was amazed that he could even say anything at that moment. He was truly at loss for words. What he had told Liara was the absolute truth. His dream of having a family with her was on its way to becoming a reality. Neither one had anything to say for a long while as they just shared each other's company, holding together, their years of hard and tiring work finally on the way to be paid off. Now Shepard could only smile as he thought of his ideal future with Liara and the children they'd have. He was unarguably the luckiest man in the galaxy.

Their moment together was interrupted as suddenly the ground beneath them started to violently shake. Liara panically looked around them, as did Shepard, but they didn't let go for a second. The darkness that surrounded the room they were in was suddenly surrounded in a bright light that blinded Shepard, who held onto Liara as tight as he could. He could feel her burying her head in his chest in fear. Regardless of what was going on, nothing was going to take either her or their child away from him now, nor ever.


	8. Chapter 8

They couldn't have died. They just couldn't have. Not when they were so close to victory. Not when the Reapers were on the brink of defeat… But the earthquake and the bright light persisted for a good one minute. A very long minute. Could everything they ever fought for have been in vain? Were they right in ever thinking that they could possibly win against such an enemy? Was Shepard naïve enough to hope that beating the Reapers was a reality?

But the light did start to go out, and the quake had finally ceased. As soon as Shepard no longer felt blinded by the light he opened his eyes, and to his relief, Liara was still exactly as she had been, and the embrace he felt during that one minute was indeed real. Liara pulled away from Shepard to look him in the eyes and say something, but his ears were still ringing and he couldn't hear her for a while.

"What… What was that?", he could finally hear Liara asking, still as puzzled as he was.

"I don't know", Shepard replied, his eyes finding it hard to adjust to the darkness after seeing that light, "Are you all right?"

"Yes. I'm… I'm fine", Liara assured, but both of them were worried as to what had happened. The sounds of battle could no longer be heard in the distance as they could before.

"Are you well enough to walk? We have to figure out what's going on", Shepard asked, struggling to get back on his feet as he still felt the pain in his back from being thrown against the wall.

"I think so…", Liara said, taking the hand that Shepard had given her as he lifted her. She was obviously in pain, as well, but nothing that either of them couldn't bear.

"I was with Wrex, Kaidan and Tali when we infiltrated the building", Shepard began to explain as he led Liara out of the room and through the dark corridors, still holding onto her hand, "Anderson's plan was for us to split up. I don't know what happened to the rest. Do you know what has become of Garrus?"

"I wouldn't be able to say for certain, Shepard", Liara replied, "I'm afraid I can't tell what was… What was real and what wasn't while I was indoctrinated."

"I know. Don't try to dwell on that", Shepard comforted Liara, knowing that there are things she wouldn't want to remember, just as he didn't want to remind himself of the dream he had while being struck by Harbinger's beam, forced into believing that he was deciding the galaxy's future when approached by a certain Catalyst, "I just hope he's all right… He has to be."

They made their way through the corridors towards the central medical bay, which was full of bodies, but now they were only a staircase away from the central debriefing room. They could hear voices coming from above, and Shepard could swear that Wrex's growl was among them. As they started walking up the steps, the lights of the facility suddenly went on again. Most of them were shot down while a fight had been going on before, but now it wasn't nearly as dark as it had been earlier. Shepard could notice through one of the windows that the clouds above London had begun to disperse, revealing the distinct dark purple sky at dawn. It felt like years since Shepard had seen a clear sky on Earth.

"We still don't know. We can't reach him on the comlink", Anderson's voice could faintly be heard as Shepard and Liara slowly approached the room, "I don't know, I'll now send my men to conduct a search of the entire building. The quake could have…"

"Shepard! Liara!", Wrex yelled, he being the first thing either of them saw as soon as they entered the room limping. They couldn't even see the rest as their line of sight was blocked by the Krogan who gave them an all too painful hug, "Don't you scare us like that! Not again!"

"Good to see you again, Wrex", Liara chuckled as soon as she could breathe again. Now both Shepard and Liara could see Anderson, Kaidan and Tali behind, the latter of whom had knelt down and was tending to a certain Turian that was lying on the floor with his armor severely damaged, his back on the wall.

"Garrus!", Shepard exclaimed in a combination of surprise, relief, and pure happiness to see his best friend alive and well.

"Wrex is right, Shepard. What were you doing, disappearing on all of us like that?", Garrus said, having the Turian equivalent of a smile on his face, which now had a couple of new scars to add to the existing ones.

"You're one to talk!", Shepard couldn't help but smile Garrus' perpetual good mood, "You had us worried for so long! How are you feeling? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Shepard, don't worry", Garrus assured, "More tired than I've ever been, but fine. Indoctrination made me realize that not all enemies can be just… sniped away."

"Don't try to talk too much, Garrus", Tali interrupted, using medi-gel to try to minimize the Turian's pain, "If you want your scars to heal, that is."

"Women_ do_ find facial scars attractive, I've learned that much, but I think I went overboard a little this time", Garrus chuckled, though it did make him flinch in pain, "So yeah, I'll stay still for a while."

"All this talk and Shepard and Liara haven't heard the news yet", Kaidan joined in, smiling at the new arrivals.

"What news?", Liara asked, confused.

"I don't suppose you happened to see a blinding white light that has apparently lit up the entire galaxy or notice that the earth was going to tear itself apart at one point?", Kaidan chuckled as he replied.

"We've done it, Shepard. The Crucible worked", Anderson explained, more than overjoyed to say it, "It took the engineers a bit of time to sort it all out, but the Crucible attached itself to the Citadel and released that light you just saw and then disintegrated. Reports from all over the galaxy say that the Reapers have stopped functioning. They've been deactivated."

"We… we won?", Shepard asked in disbelief. He did hear and understand what Anderson said, but he still couldn't believe it to be true.

"Yes. We won, due in no small part to you. All of you", Anderson exclaimed.

Only when his friends let him hear the news did everyone start hugging one another, rejoicing that it was finally done; the Reapers and the Illusive Man were defeated, the galaxy was saved. Shepard's mind couldn't process it all at first. Even when he was certain that it could be done, he still found it difficult to believe that it actually happened. They were all free. Every single one.

Shepard couldn't help but grin when everyone started bantering and fighting over who was going to buy the first round of drinks when the celebrations inevitably started. In order to settle things Shepard announced that he would be the one to buy the drinks, as he had one more thing to celebrate about. Looking towards Liara, she knew it was her cue to tell the rest that Shepard and her were expecting a baby. And then a repeat of what had happened: a series of hugs, congratulations, laughs, but most of all joy.

As soon as Shepard and Liara were no longer surrounded by all of their friends, they found themselves a more private spot. They shared a passionate kiss, pouring all of their feelings into one another in a single gesture that completely intoxicated them.

"How do you feel as the saviour of the galaxy, Shepard?", Liara asked as soon as they broke the kiss, running her hands along his arms.

"I'm no saviour, Liara. It's because of each and every single one of us that we're finally free from the Reapers", Shepard retorted, "And you know we couldn't have done this without you, Liara. I couldn't have done what I did if you weren't there for me."

"And I'd be dead if it weren't for you, Shepard… Or worse", Liara replied, trembling a bit at the memory, but quickly tossing the thought aside, "Have you thought about the name of the baby?"

"No, I haven't yet. What about you?", Shepard asked.

"Neither have I. I suggest we wait for the celebrations to pass and the galaxy to start functioning normally again until we do", Liara answered, giving Shepard another quick peck on the lips.

"And what about us, Liara?", Shepard inquired, "I know you'll want to help with Thessia's restoration."

"Yes, and you'll obviously want to help rebuild Earth", Liara sighed.

"I do, yes, but having a family with you is what I want more than anything", Shepard said, caressing Liara's cheek as he added, "And I don't want anything more than to spend the rest of my life with you."

"Well… We have earned ourselves a rest, haven't we?", Liara chuckled, "Commander Shepard settling down… Never thought I'd see it."

"I didn't think I would, either, to tell you the truth", Shepard laughed, "But I had made up my mind long ago that as soon as the Reapers were defeated… I'd ask you to live with me for as long as I live. And quite possibly have a family together, which seems like we'll soon have."

"We most certainly will", Liara agreed, putting her hand on her stomach and smiling at the thought of their baby being inside her somewhere, kissing Shepard once again before asking, "So what do you have in mind?"

"Well, I believe I told you before that I earned myself a nice little place on Intai'sei in the Argos Rho cluster", Shepard retorted, "Very beautiful planet. Very secluded. I don't think the Reapers would have bothered attacking it so soon. I think it'll be perfect for us for now."

"I'd very much like that", Liara replied.

They couldn't discuss much else as they were once again swept in the crowd, a lot of ships beginning to descend on Earth now that the Reapers were defeated, the sky being completely clear and as blue as Shepard had remembered it before the attacks. Liara went to contact her homeworld, and among all the celebrations, Anderson had finally found himself some time alone and was looking through one of the windows, deep in thought. Shepard approached him and looked through the very same window.

"London will never be the same again", Anderson stated ruefully.

"No. It will be better than before", Shepard assured the Admiral, giving him a pat on the back, "It will take time, but we'll rebuild. I'm sure that the other races will also help us."

"I know, Shepard. It's just that we might never get to see it", Anderson sighed, "We'll be having a meeting with the Council and some representatives of the other races. Regarding the Reapers and the Citadel."

"What do you think will happen?", Shepard inquired, looking at the Canary Wharf district opposite their location, completely in ruins.

"I think we'll all vouch for destroying the Reaper corpses. Nobody would want to have them around and see them reactivate somehow", Anderson replied, "And I bet we'll act fast before looters try to scavenge any Reaper tech they can find. And the Citadel will most likely be moved back to Widow. That's where it belongs, not here."

"With Udina dead, they're bound to ask you to be part of the Council again", Shepard suspected.

"I haven't thought about that", Anderson answered, sighing, "It's tough work and I don't think it suits me. But I may have no choice in the matter."

"Just so you know, I'm standing behind your decision, whatever it might be", Shepard assured the Admiral, giving him one more pat on the back as they continued to gaze at the numerous descending Alliance shuttles around London.

"Likewise, Shepard", Anderson said, shaking the hand of the Commander, "You, however, deserve a break. And you're going to be a father now. Not a challenge you're used to. Liara will need you, and I expect to see you being there for her every step along the way."

"I will, sir", Shepard assured him, "It's what I've always wanted. But you know I'll always be around to help you with anything, regardless."

"I know, Shepard, and you have my thanks for that", the Admiral replied.

The few days that followed the defeat of the Reapers were as tiring for Shepard as the actual fight with them was. As the Citadel was damaged from the fight with the Reaper that had been enclosed in its arms, and since most of the ships in the fleets were in need of repairs, Earth became a temporary residence to everyone who had fought with the Reapers in the final battle above its skies. There were parties everywhere on the planet, and one couldn't tell whose homeworld it was for a while as every single species, including the Geth, was walking the streets of its numerous cities or whatever was left of them. It was a perfect picture of unity; a unity that helped defeat the Reapers once and for all, showing them that their logic had been wrong all along. The sacrifices of all those who had died in the war were honored on the surface of Earth.

Shepard reunited with all of his friends during one of those big parties, which took place in London, including every surviving squadmate that he ever had aboard the Normandy. Grunt had managed to lead the Krogan into a decisive ground victory against a Destroyer in the outskirts of the city by using cunning tactics nobody knew he had in him, and Wrex couldn't have been more proud. The Krogan were to leave for Tuchanka in a day or two afterwards, Wrex reuniting with Bakara, assembling the Krogan under one clan, no longer under the effects of the genophage, with plans to start a new life in Tuchanka that didn't involve death and destruction for a change.

The Salarians didn't suffer a lot of losses, but they mourned the deaths of many who fought alongside the rest, which included Mordin and Kirrahe. The former's name would be remembered by every Krogan and every Salarian as the one who made them work together and as the one who helped cure the genophage, hopefully for the better. The latter had given his life to buy Shepard time while on the Citadel Tower, not knowing at the time that it was a trap set by the Illusive Man. His eminent speeches would be quoted by the following generations and his name would be remembered and taught in every Salarian school.

The Rachni ships were of tremendous help during the battle above Earth, and even when the others made it clear that they could join galactic society, the Rachni believed that the wounds from the Rachni Wars were still fresh, and they'd retreat back through the relay to their homeworld. The Council had made it clear, however, that they were more than welcome to have an embassy on the Citadel.

Tali decided to keep her position as an Admiral and would leave for Rannoch along with the Quarians and the Geth with plans to peacefully coexist and help one another to bring the planet back to its former glory. Shepard reminded Tali of her plans to build a home, and she assured him that she hadn't forgotten that, promising to invite all of her friends as soon as she had it done, which would probably be soon since a few Geth promised to help her. Legion's sacrifice on Rannoch would be a symbol to anyone who ever doubted that synthetics are living creatures, as well.

What Garrus had plans to do first after he left Earth was to reunite with his father and sister on Palaven and help Primarch Victus, who also survived, rebuild the Turian homeworld. The Krogan had also decided to help the Turians in that department, as they understood that Tuchanka wasn't nearly as badly hit as Palaven was. Garrus promised that he'd frequently visit Shepard and Liara whenever he found the time, because they thought that if anyone could tell the best bed-time stories to their child, it would have to be Garrus.

As the second and only human Spectre after Shepard's decision to retire, Kaidan would be meeting with the Council soon to see whether they would task him with something that involved helping repair the Citadel or move it back where it belonged. As humanity played a huge role in the defeat of the Reapers, the Council promised that the Citadel, at least for the time being, would remain on Earth to help the humans with their homeworld's restoration. That made the job easier for Kaidan since he also wanted to go back to Vancouver.

A lot of equipment that had been used in the labs while building the Crucible had suddenly gone missing. Shepard knew who was behind that and smiled as he imagined Kasumi stealing whatever she could as soon as the Crucible had done its job. She wasn't sure of her future plans, and after seeing her on the party in London and trading stories of the fight with her, she was nowhere to be seen.

Zaeed's intention was to take back control of the Blue Suns and go to Omega along with Aria where they both belonged. Shepard couldn't possibly see the two of them getting along so he wasn't sure what exactly was going to happen there, but he wished Zaeed luck with his plan to civilize the mercenaries, well, at least to a degree. With Vido Santiago out of the way it was his chance to steer the Blue Suns in the right direction once again.

Jack would return to Grissom Academy with her students, who were of great help during the battle in London, providing one of the biggest Biotic Barriers anyone had ever seen while protecting a group of tanks taking down a Reaper Destroyer. If Shepard didn't know any better, he'd say that Jack had already become a people person, and for the first time he saw her getting along with pretty much everybody. The war might have been terrible, but it changed a lot of people, and mostly for the better.

Miranda had every intention to help her sister Oriana go through the trauma of being kidnapped once again. She was so young and yet experienced so much suffering already, and thankfully Miranda had survived the battle so that she might be able to provide the support Oriana desperately deserved. The head of Project Lazarus didn't know what her plans afterwards would be, but they would most likely involve helping the Alliance in any way she could, turning over a new leaf.

After being of great help to the Crucible project, Jacob was to return to Brynn and have a family together somewhere on Eden Prime with her and their expected child. Thankfully, the human colony was mostly intact after the brief Reaper attack that it endured. The Reapers that were to invade Eden Prime had to head to Earth as fast as they could after being compromised by the Illusive Man, but found themselves deactivated at the end.

With the Ardat-Yakshi Monastery completely destroyed on the planet of Lesuss, Samara's first job after leaving Alliance space would be to help her only remaining daughter Falere until the Justicar Code once again required her to be somewhere else righting wrongs. The war had changed her priorities, however, and after the loss of her two other daughters, Samara realized just how precious Falere was to her and she knew that she had to be there for her.

The only living Prothean, Javik, intended to keep his promise and go to the Cronian Nebula and find the graves of his ancestors and join them. Shepard knew that he couldn't discourage the Prothean from doing otherwise and respected his decision to do so. Javik thanked the Commander for letting him have the incredible opportunity to experience an entirely different cycle than his; a cycle different than all cycles before it, as he had put it.

After joining the N7 program and having the honour of serving with Commander Shepard and most importantly survived the worst war that Earth has ever known, James Vega encouraged a lot of soldiers like him to join the System Alliance military, as many agreed to sign up in the Interplanetary Combatives Training thanks to the great many examples of heroes like him and Shepard being a part of it all.

Joker was offered to have a medical exoskeleton installed so that he'd be able to overcome his disease, but he refused in favour of staying pilot of the Normandy and being with EDI. While the Normandy wouldn't obviously be the same without Shepard and his crew and wouldn't have as exciting missions as before, the Alliance had tasked the frigate to be the eyes and ears of humanity, exploring the farthest reaches of known space for potential threats.

Shepard himself had a plan as to what the next chapter, possibly last chapter, of his life was going to be. Even though he was going to help Anderson and Hackett in any way he could concerning their relations with the Council and the restoration of Earth, he was officially going to retire and spend the rest of his life building a family with Liara. They were already expecting their first child, but that didn't mean it was going to be their last. Their plans for the future were not clearly defined yet, but for the time being Liara and Shepard would be living together on Intai'sei. One thing about their future _was_ certain: wherever they were planning on going, whatever they were planning on doing, they'd always be together, forever in their eternal love.


	9. Chapter 9

The view of Shepard and Liara's house on Intai'sei never ceased to amaze. Its surroundings were so simple, yet so oddly tranquil and relaxing; just what a person could ever need after such a chaotic adventure that had spanned for at least three years. Ahern had definitely made a mistake when he decided to bet this house, and while he had no plans to retire, he couldn't possibly have enjoyed losing such an incredible opportunity to get away from the hectic life many people have to endure every day and to simply relax. There were a lot of places in the galaxy that offered that kind of opportunity, true, but none of them were safer than here.

It had been two weeks since the Reapers' ultimate defeat and Shepard had finally managed to enjoy the peace that Intai'sei had to offer. Liara was due to move in the next day as she had a few more things that she needed to take care of. Shepard, however, had the night to himself and simply sat on the couch overlooking the fields around the house at midnight. He had turned off the lights so that he could enjoy gazing at the countless stars in the sky with the nearby Patashi being the brightest one. This was the kind of peace he had fought for, and he longed to share it with Liara. It was gorgeous.

Beep. Something had woken Shepard up. He had fallen asleep on the couch while looking at the stars when he suddenly noticed that the nearby computer was beeping. Somebody was trying to contact him; somebody who apparently hadn't heard that Shepard was trying to finally have a good night's sleep. Muttering under his breath, Shepard stood up and accepted the call, even though the computer couldn't specify who was calling him.

"Who is it?", Shepard asked, rubbing his eyes as he yawned.

"Shepard", a voice he remembered all to well responded. The shock from hearing that voice awakened him instantly.

"What the… How… How the hell did you find me?", Shepard asked panically.

"That's of no concern", the Illusive Man's voice answered, "It's probably night time on Intai'sei, so I don't want to bore you with any unnecessary details. I initially wanted to contact you to express my disappointment with your choice to destroy the Reapers, Shepard, but I should have known better. You always choked on the hard decisions."

"You never give up, do you? Even after your precious Reapers were defeated, you still honestly believe that we'd have been better off if we surrendered to them?", Shepard raised his voice in anger, "Where the hell are you? Where did you run off to?"

"You really think I'm going to answer that, Shepard?", the Illusive Man replied, "Don't waste your time trying to trace the call. I'm off to what you might call, a quest, anyway."

"What are you talking about?", Shepard inquired, starting to wonder whether he was dreaming or not.

"The Crucible's energy negated all ultrasonic waves that were being emitted by the Reaper artifacts and sucked in all their power, Shepard. That's how they were powered down, but I'm sure you don't really care about the details", the Illusive Man started to explain, "Either way, you wouldn't believe the data I got from the Reapers while they were under my control. You'd never be able to fathom what's out there in dark space."

"The Reapers just shared their knowledge with you? I find that hard to believe", Shepard sneered.

"Not willingly, of course, but I don't expect you to understand, Shepard", the Illusive Man retorted, "The things that lie beyond our galaxy, Shepard… They're something inconceivable and intangible. The Reapers are nothing compared to what they showed me. And I'm going there."

"You're… you're going to dark space? Are you serious?", Shepard asked, having trouble believing what he was hearing.

"Yes. The ends justify the means, Shepard", the Illusive Man answered, evidently determined, "And the effort would be worth it in ways you can't even imagine. And if you think it's impossible, just remember that I brought you back to life and think it over."

"Then by all means, go, and never come back. Why even bother to contact me?", Shepard replied.

"Just wanted to let you know, Shepard. I was never indoctrinated. I controlled the Reapers, and I got what I wanted. They were a means to an end, so don't go ahead and think that you've defeated me", the Illusive Man retorted, "It's a pity that you never managed to realize your true potential. You could have been so much more, but you've always been narrow-minded. Go ahead and enjoy the mundane life, Shepard. Goodbye."

The connection was lost as the computer's flickering light died out. Shepard stood there, staring at the computer, confounded to his very core. He gave one more look towards the stars through the window of his house. They went on forever, and yet, they were only a tiny part of the infinity that was space.

**The End**


End file.
